Horse Racing questions and answers

[batt33]

“probably about 99.99% of my race watching is through a monitor of some sort lol and sure I'd enjoy the spectacle of watching from the clockers stand..also cool to get an idea how things happen over there during the process “


The part I think you guys would like the most was early in the morning, sun just coming up , sitting or standing in the old section of Pimlico in the first row in front of the 1/8th pole watching horses train . The place was empty except for some trainers and the clockers. Maybe 15-20 people throughout the grandstand. Drinking a coffee or having a hot cup of soup in the winter was a must at Bowie which was from the 3/4 pole just inside the chute on the surface as that place was seriously cold early , and Laurel was just past the 1/2 mile pole at the tree by the track. Stood in those places for about 20 years every morning.
In the summer right about 8:20 in the morning you could literally feel the heat turn up. Amazing that I could feel that all the time with the sun out in the summer. Always tried to have the workers out by 7:30 and the late Lasix workers out by 9:00 if the vet came by 6AM. Didn’t always work out but we tried to make it happen.
It got to the point where I watched other claiming trainers horses train as well if they had markings I could remember. Mental notes on future possible claims .

Delaware was at the 1/4 pole gap but they had a training track as well so I would move around a lot there depending on who was doing what.

I’m just rambling now but I do know that many of you in here would love to see and experience that. I would have loved to have had you guys there.

My cousin would invite me down in the winter time after a long season of fighting Wildland fire as she prepared horses for the training sales
I loved waking up early to get to the track.... the smell of the air... quiet.. peaceful... I smell the sea breeze.... a little heavy.... ( when I get up early now ...early in the morning on a cloudy day... I catch a whiff .. reminds me of those days) I Get to the barn Grooms are way ahead of me.... Friendly.... love their horses legs temp checked... sip of coffee.... out to the track.... Nice work... jog or canter... back to the barn.....
Hey "Poncho" From the groom .....can you "listo" as he gives me the shank..... "oh sh##" okay now I'm a " hot walker" Thankfully I never got an ornery one!..... First one I ever walked "crystal cop" Very Mello until another groom dropped a bucket....Cousin yelled out .... shake the shank!!!! don't look at their eyes!!! ... oh fudge...
She calmed down...... whew!
Goes through the sales ring...... I come back told her she went through the ring for 32....... she says 3200? I'm no 32 000! she is no way....

Trainer who raced her ... Bob Baffert.... she had very little success on the track... But one of her sons " ex marks the cop" had a little success
Okay Str how is that for a ramble!!!
on a side note most of the kin of those two are off the track..... but boy I sure enjoyed following.....

[str]

no kingsbarns on saturday

Being honest, I'm kind of glad.

I would love to see him in another allowance race if there is one.

I know, I'm babying him.

[str]

A race like non winner of $$$ at a mile or more since a year ago ( not sure of his Lou. derby date ) or nw at a mile or over since … something like that.
Be a real solid race like a weak stake but not a G 3. Like a G 4 if that was a thing.

[JBEX]

A race like non winner of $$$ at a mile or more since a year ago ( not sure of his Lou. derby date ) or nw at a mile or over since … something like that.
Be a real solid race like a weak stake but not a G 3. Like a G 4 if that was a thing.

I remember seeing alw conditions like that in the past and it's a place he could run if it was available..trying to remember if that's a stand alone condition or attached to a nw2x ot race..if it's the latter I guess there's a better chance there might be one coming up

[str]

I remember seeing alw conditions like that in the past and it's a place he could run if it was available..trying to remember if that's a stand alone condition or attached to a nw2x ot race..if it's the latter I guess there's a better chance there might be one coming up

Back in the day it was a standalone condition but nowadays maybe it's tied to a 4 other than?

It will be a very nice race if it's out there. Hopefully if it has a killer in it, it will be KB. But like I've said before, you would be amazed at who can be eligible.


Just thought of one. Cody's Wish. Yikes ! /not that he would , but... you never know.

[str]

My cousin would invite me down in the winter time after a long season of fighting Wildland fire as she prepared horses for the training sales
I loved waking up early to get to the track.... the smell of the air... quiet.. peaceful... I smell the sea breeze.... a little heavy.... ( when I get up early now ...early in the morning on a cloudy day... I catch a whiff .. reminds me of those days) I Get to the barn Grooms are way ahead of me.... Friendly.... love their horses legs temp checked... sip of coffee.... out to the track.... Nice work... jog or canter... back to the barn.....
Hey "Poncho" From the groom .....can you "listo" as he gives me the shank..... "oh sh##" okay now I'm a " hot walker" Thankfully I never got an ornery one!..... First one I ever walked "crystal cop" Very Mello until another groom dropped a bucket....Cousin yelled out .... shake the shank!!!! don't look at their eyes!!! ... oh fudge...
She calmed down...... whew!
Goes through the sales ring...... I come back told her she went through the ring for 32....... she says 3200? I'm no 32 000! she is no way....

Trainer who raced her ... Bob Baffert.... she had very little success on the track... But one of her sons " ex marks the cop" had a little success
Okay Str how is that for a ramble!!!
on a side note most of the kin of those two are off the track..... but boy I sure enjoyed following.....

Great story Batt33.

BTW, obviously, Your cousin knows his way around a horse. The horse gets all hyped up but as soon as you make them think of something else, like that shank, not pain, just something else, they settle down. Never need to hit them or yell at them, just change their thought process for a second or two.
Easier said than done. Nice job with that.

[str]

My cousin would invite me down in the winter time after a long season of fighting Wildland fire as she prepared horses for the training sales
I loved waking up early to get to the track.... the smell of the air... quiet.. peaceful... I smell the sea breeze.... a little heavy.... ( when I get up early now ...early in the morning on a cloudy day... I catch a whiff .. reminds me of those days) I Get to the barn Grooms are way ahead of me.... Friendly.... love their horses legs temp checked... sip of coffee.... out to the track.... Nice work... jog or canter... back to the barn.....
Hey "Poncho" From the groom .....can you "listo" as he gives me the shank..... "oh sh##" okay now I'm a " hot walker" Thankfully I never got an ornery one!..... First one I ever walked "crystal cop" Very Mello until another groom dropped a bucket....Cousin yelled out .... shake the shank!!!! don't look at their eyes!!! ... oh fudge...
She calmed down...... whew!
Goes through the sales ring...... I come back told her she went through the ring for 32....... she says 3200? I'm no 32 000! she is no way....

Trainer who raced her ... Bob Baffert.... she had very little success on the track... But one of her sons " ex marks the cop" had a little success
Okay Str how is that for a ramble!!!
on a side note most of the kin of those two are off the track..... but boy I sure enjoyed following.....

When people ask me what I miss most about the game, it's ultimately the same answer every time. "The people in it".

[JBEX]

Back in the day it was a standalone condition but nowadays maybe it's tied to a 4 other than?

It will be a very nice race if it's out there. Hopefully if it has a killer in it, it will be KB. But like I've said before, you would be amazed at who can be eligible.


Just thought of one. Cody's Wish. Yikes ! /not that he would , but... you never know.

it seems to me ,off the top, that even 3 other than are infrequent..I agree that it would be ideal but I have a hunch it's not something that's available .. big extra distance and all i think it might be the g3 ben ali on 4/20 at kee..maybe with the extra 3 weeks time (vs running this saturday) they could prepare him better for 1 3/16 mile race ..also he did win at this distance in the la derby albeit under ideal conditions vs 3yo's

[batt33]

Great story Batt33.

BTW, obviously, Your cousin knows his way around a horse. The horse gets all hyped up but as soon as you make them think of something else, like that shank, not pain, just something else, they settle down. Never need to hit them or yell at them, just change their thought process for a second or two.
Easier said than done. Nice job with that.

Thanks str!
I later asked my cousin... why not make eye contact? She said if they see you freaked out" "white of your eyes" ... It could make them spooked even more.... I never knew that...

talking about changing their thought process,
As I started walking a few more around the barn... this one horse at this certain point would "nip at me" well this happens a few times ...
The barn manager kinda chuckles.... looks at me and says you wanna stop that? Uhm yes please.... HE says "okay just before you get to that spot ...."wiggle the shank"".. so I get close to the spot... ready for the nip.... wiggle the shank... and yup no more issues....
Ah fun times!

[batt33]

When people ask me what I miss most about the game, it's ultimately the same answer every time. "The people in it".

Yes for sure...even though I was only a part time visitor in the winter time... I met some great people!

[str]

it seems to me ,off the top, that even 3 other than are infrequent..I agree that it would be ideal but I have a hunch it's not something that's available .. big extra distance and all i think it might be the g3 ben ali on 4/20 at kee..maybe with the extra 3 weeks time (vs running this saturday) they could prepare him better for 1 3/16 mile race ..also he did win at this distance in the la derby albeit under ideal conditions vs 3yo's

It amazes me how a 3 other than is not a regular event in the book. It used to be about every 10 -12 days both short and long.
Things are really different from that aspect today.

[JBEX]

It amazes me how a 3 other than is not a regular event in the book. It used to be about every 10 -12 days both short and long.
Things are really different from that aspect today.

was thinking if the kee race is the choice
maybe they're happy with a really good effort .. being involved past the ⅛th pole (hopefully well past it) and holding on to finish a good 2nd or 3rd would possibly be something to move forward off

[JBEX]

thinking down the road (if his next race wherever goes well) the salvatore mile and phillip iselin (both g3 in july,aug) at monmouth might be good fits..latter is 1 1/16th..he's been there once before (not sure if that matters) ..as interested in this as todd lol

[JBEX]

thinking down the road (if his next race wherever goes well) the salvatore mile and phillip iselin (both g3 in july,aug) at monmouth might be good fits..latter is 1 1/16th..he's been there once before (not sure if that matters) ..as interested in this as todd lol

I wonder if they realistically had a 2 year plan to get this horse to his potential ? only 4yo and lightly raced,make strides and if he's up to it shoot for the moon next year ..outside possibility he's ready this year

[str]

I wonder if they realistically had a 2 year plan to get this horse to his potential ? only 4yo and lightly raced,make strides and if he's up to it shoot for the moon next year ..outside possibility he's ready this year

Yes. He really has much to prove to everyone as to overall availability. Stopping him after this year unless forced to would not give him a full chance unless he went crazy this year. He would need to be the best. He has a long way to go to do that.

Sometimes potential never quite pans out. Hope that's not the case here because he looked and acted the part early. So I see no reason why they would not run him at 5 years old unless it was physical or he really flopped. Hate to even think that about him.

They are giving him every chance to be something. Really hope we see that.

Saw he worked yesterday in just under 1:02. Again, have to think it was the tail end of a mile or mile + type situation. A building type breeze pointing towards something. Just don't know what or where yet.

[Madison]

Str, GP R14 Fierceness:

BC (Nov) looked like a monster against iron.

GP 02/03 at 1/5 gave up in the stretch with a slight lead over Hades.

Any thoughts on what might be going on with this guy??

[str]

Str, GP R14 Fierceness:

BC (Nov) looked like a monster against iron.

GP 02/03 at 1/5 gave up in the stretch with a slight lead over Hades.

Any thoughts on what might be going on with this guy??

This is a guess but without knowing the horse or seeing HOW he has worked, it can't be more than that.

Since that race, which I did not see in it's entirety , just the last 1/4 mile, but did read the chart carefully on, this horse has worked regularly and every work on paper looks to have been solid although HOW any horse works is waaay more info than how fast that work was. It always about the how.

That said, his last work was sparkling. That is a trademark of Todd's as to being ready to go.

So the simple question is, do you bet him today? Not a simple answer IMO.

With 8-5 and maybe less, the 10 post and the gate very close to the 1st turn, speed inside so he loses ground all the way around most likely, and he seems to be a bit finicky if things don't go so well for him. I say that, because I saw the run through the lane of his last race and he threw his head up and basically quit trying about the 1/8th pole. Why? Could have been the pinballing he endured leaving the gate. Could have been that he just did not have the lung capacity at that time which will be better today. But whatever it was, he gave it up, which can be understandable if he was out of air but was it that? Plenty of questions for sure. That said, when he shows up, he is much better than these have shown to date as you know.
If you want to play this race, maybe play him small and if he throws his head up again, have a small saver on Shug's horse who should be running late. Don't know if he's good enough but it is Shug and he is all that with a nice horse. Or another closer you like take a swing with assuming the pace is honest. If they walk the dog on the lead and Fierceness does not fire, someone will most likely wire the field.

But put real money in this race today? I would not. There are a ton of spots that are more predictable than this one and at 8-5 you need predictability because there is no room to " take a swing and see what happens". For me, I use that line when they are double digits not 8-5.

Hope that helps.

Good luck if you play Madison and everyone else as well.

[mrginandtonic]

This is a guess but without knowing the horse or seeing HOW he has worked, it can't be more than that.

Since that race, which I did not see in it's entirety , just the last 1/4 mile, but did read the chart carefully on, this horse has worked regularly and every work on paper looks to have been solid although HOW any horse works is waaay more info than how fast that work was. It always about the how.

That said, his last work was sparkling. That is a trademark of Todd's as to being ready to go.

So the simple question is, do you bet him today? Not a simple answer IMO.

With 8-5 and maybe less, the 10 post and the gate very close to the 1st turn, speed inside so he loses ground all the way around most likely, and he seems to be a bit finicky if things don't go so well for him. I say that, because I saw the run through the lane of his last race and he threw his head up and basically quit trying about the 1/8th pole. Why? Could have been the pinballing he endured leaving the gate. Could have been that he just did not have the lung capacity at that time which will be better today. But whatever it was, he gave it up, which can be understandable if he was out of air but was it that? Plenty of questions for sure. That said, when he shows up, he is much better than these have shown to date as you know.
If you want to play this race, maybe play him small and if he throws his head up again, have a small saver on Shug's horse who should be running late. Don't know if he's good enough but it is Shug and he is all that with a nice horse. Or another closer you like take a swing with assuming the pace is honest. If they walk the dog on the lead and Fierceness does not fire, someone will most likely wire the field.

But put real money in this race today? I would not. There are a ton of spots that are more predictable than this one and at 8-5 you need predictability because there is no room to " take a swing and see what happens". For me, I use that line when they are double digits not 8-5.

Hope that helps.

Good luck if you play Madison and everyone else as well.

Thanks STR for the info. I guess as a gambler, one must make the decision on whether Fierceness will be BC version or not. Today, I will take a stand against him and see what happens. Same with Muth, he hasn't improved much since his debut in terms of Beyer figures, and that's unlike Baffert. So gonna go against him too. Timberlake, I do worry and hope he will come up short. Should be an interesting race to watch.

[Madison]

This is a guess but without knowing the horse or seeing HOW he has worked, it can't be more than that.

Since that race, which I did not see in it's entirety , just the last 1/4 mile, but did read the chart carefully on, this horse has worked regularly and every work on paper looks to have been solid although HOW any horse works is waaay more info than how fast that work was. It always about the how.

That said, his last work was sparkling. That is a trademark of Todd's as to being ready to go.

So the simple question is, do you bet him today? Not a simple answer IMO.

With 8-5 and maybe less, the 10 post and the gate very close to the 1st turn, speed inside so he loses ground all the way around most likely, and he seems to be a bit finicky if things don't go so well for him. I say that, because I saw the run through the lane of his last race and he threw his head up and basically quit trying about the 1/8th pole. Why? Could have been the pinballing he endured leaving the gate. Could have been that he just did not have the lung capacity at that time which will be better today. But whatever it was, he gave it up, which can be understandable if he was out of air but was it that? Plenty of questions for sure. That said, when he shows up, he is much better than these have shown to date as you know.
If you want to play this race, maybe play him small and if he throws his head up again, have a small saver on Shug's horse who should be running late. Don't know if he's good enough but it is Shug and he is all that with a nice horse. Or another closer you like take a swing with assuming the pace is honest. If they walk the dog on the lead and Fierceness does not fire, someone will most likely wire the field.

But put real money in this race today? I would not. There are a ton of spots that are more predictable than this one and at 8-5 you need predictability because there is no room to " take a swing and see what happens". For me, I use that line when they are double digits not 8-5.

Hope that helps.

Good luck if you play Madison and everyone else as well.

"he seems to be a bit finicky if things don't go so well for him." This is what bothers me most as I agree.

Always appreciated!!!

[Madison]

"he seems to be a bit finicky if things don't go so well for him." This is what bothers me most as I agree.

Always appreciated!!!

2 of his last 3 have been questionably week late???

[Madison]

Uuuugggghhhh!!

[str]

"he seems to be a bit finicky if things don't go so well for him." This is what bothers me most as I agree.

Always appreciated!!!

2 of his last 3 have been questionably week late???

Uuuugggghhhh!!

What happened Madison. Did you play him, play against him or skip the race?

I did not see the race but with 2 scratches and the 8 post and especially making the lead from outside in 24, the race for win was over after the clubhouse turn.

[Madison]

What happened Madison. Did you play him, play against him or skip the race?

I did not see the race but with 2 scratches and the 8 post and especially making the lead from outside in 24, the race for win was over after the clubhouse turn.

Hello Bud,

Horse broke to the lead and won by 20. Not sure there's a handful of horses in the country that can catch this guy with the lead.

I bed $20 win. I was 5/5 all day , but only bet 2. Im having awful issues with my past (bet to eat, 35 years ago) and now. I can afford 100 times what I could then and I'm afraid to bet 1/100 of what I did then. I need a wagering psychologist.

[JBEX]

it's still challenging for me to do "reply with quote" on long posts so this is from you in post 7275 regarding deterministic


"But 2 works between races sounds right so maybe he is shooting for the Blue Grass. If so, look for him to finish up maybe a little quicker with the next work"


the blue grass was my thought because he shipped away from aqueduct to payson after the gotham but turns out it's going to be the wood memorial..you were right about 1 more work and it being quicker ..2 seconds faster to be exact this past Friday (8 days apart) .. looking forward to seeing him go on saturday

[Madison]

[str]

Hello Bud,

Horse broke to the lead and won by 20. Not sure there's a handful of horses in the country that can catch this guy with the lead.

I bed $20 win. I was 5/5 all day , but only bet 2. Im having awful issues with my past (bet to eat, 35 years ago) and now. I can afford 100 times what I could then and I'm afraid to bet 1/100 of what I did then. I need a wagering psychologist.

Sorry I could not address this today.
Tomorrow looks better so far but long weekends tend to push everything around.

I'll respond ASAP.

[str]

it's still challenging for me to do "reply with quote" on long posts so this is from you in post 7275 regarding deterministic


"But 2 works between races sounds right so maybe he is shooting for the Blue Grass. If so, look for him to finish up maybe a little quicker with the next work"


the blue grass was my thought because he shipped away from aqueduct to payson after the gotham but turns out it's going to be the wood memorial..you were right about 1 more work and it being quicker ..2 seconds faster to be exact this past Friday (8 days apart) .. looking forward to seeing him go on saturday

Good to know JBEX. Thank you for that.

Real glad to see that last work was on point. That tells us he is coming into the race in fine shape.

Excited to see him run.

[str]

Hello Bud,

Horse broke to the lead and won by 20. Not sure there's a handful of horses in the country that can catch this guy with the lead.

I bed $20 win. I was 5/5 all day , but only bet 2. Im having awful issues with my past (bet to eat, 35 years ago) and now. I can afford 100 times what I could then and I'm afraid to bet 1/100 of what I did then. I need a wagering psychologist.

I'm not a psychologist but have analyzed myself in hindsight enough to know a couple things that might fit you as well as me.

You should not try to compare, IMO, what you bet as a kid to what you do today. With all the knowledge you have gathered since then, why would you want to be mentally restricted as an older man that has experienced 1000 times more than you had at the younger age when you (and I), bet much more than we could most likely afford. You, like me, have probably forgot more at this point than you used to know .

That said, why bet a large amount if you don't need to financially. Allow yourself some relaxed entertainment. When I was a kid, I bet my whole friggin paycheck on a horse more than once as a hotwalker. Peanut butter on white and chips and a Mountain Dew all week got old quickly.

You do not need to make any money betting but if you are like me, you want to do one thing more than anything. Beat the game!

It can be horses, football, whatever. For me , the satisfaction isn't an extra couple of hundred or thousand in my pocket. It's knowing you beat the system. The game as a whole.

Could I spend a ton of time and beat the horses. Yes. But at what cost? I'd put a lot more time into the game but maybe see less of my grandkids, my wife, my kids, etc. etc. Been there , done that, as I will explain in a minute.
Again speaking for myself, I LIVE to beat the NFL. I've beaten the horses and I kind of look at it like, as much as I know what to look for and with all the experience I have had in the game, If I don't beat it, I must be a damn fool. But that is unique to me and took decades of 12-14 hour days and plenty of 7 days a week. Half a lifetime. And that had a cost.

At the time, I sacrificed time from my girlfriend and my friends from school days. Lost touch for a while with them. Never reconnected with some, now know a fair amount well, and a few, VERY well. Married my old girlfriend and we are at 44 years and counting. As I said before, as a trainer, she was my best claim I ever made. I got lucky.

As for the NFL, I love the challenge. I play tournaments and a weekly pool or two but the most joy comes from waiting, lurking, and seriously betting 6 or 8 or however many present themselves each year while NEVER forcing a play. I don't need to. You don't either. When the end of the season comes, and I have won on those serious plays, money can't buy the feeling I get. Mainly because I know how hard betting and beating the NFL is.
Maybe I learned to not worry about betting all the time from watching thousands of races live and having no bet in the race. My money was actually out on the track running, so no time or desire to bet tickets. Whatever the case, it has me in a very comfortable spot these days.

And you go 5 for 5 on a big Saturday card. Heck with the couple hundred you might have bet on Fierceness, look at what you saw, learned, and are smarter moving forward with. Knowledge. Something as we get older was might find ourselves taking for granted. But we paid a long and dear price for that Madison. So now it is time to reap the reward that comes from paying that price.

Maybe approach the game like making small consistent plays, whatever you decide, but allow yourself a chance for a subset of plays that you feel make perfect sense. Those would be at a higher amount. Maybe a play in the winter, a play or two, or none, in the spring, same with the summer and fall. Keep the garden variety plays in one column and the big select plays in another. Adjust accordingly once you have some data.
As for what to play, my only advise would be that understanding how what happened last Saturday with Fierceness should, in my mind, be much more important than cashing a ticket of any real size on a horse that pays 4.20. No knock on you, that's just my view.
With that, I have pretty much thought since last Saturday, that if he makes the lead and a clean right eye and can keep the first 1/2 mile at 47 and change or better, he pretty much can't lose the Derby. So I won't be solely looking to see if he can win or not, I will be looking to see if he can be compromised or not, thus making a differing style of runner worth a play. I would not consider betting him at what will probably be about even money. But if I feel he can't lose if he breaks kind of thing, I will then handicap trying to find a horse or horses that might run 2nd, 3rd, or whatever, depending on how the race takes shape. Then check the value of those plays, and bet accordingly, or just watch for the future.

I hope this stuff makes sense Madison. I don't know if it will help you or not. Sure hope at least some of it does.

GL and all the best to you sir.

[Madison]

I'm not a psychologist but have analyzed myself in hindsight enough to know a couple things that might fit you as well as me.

You should not try to compare, IMO, what you bet as a kid to what you do today. With all the knowledge you have gathered since then, why would you want to be mentally restricted as an older man that has experienced 1000 times more than you had at the younger age when you (and I), bet much more than we could most likely afford. You, like me, have probably forgot more at this point than you used to know .

That said, why bet a large amount if you don't need to financially. Allow yourself some relaxed entertainment. When I was a kid, I bet my whole friggin paycheck on a horse more than once as a hotwalker. Peanut butter on white and chips and a Mountain Dew all week got old quickly.

You do not need to make any money betting but if you are like me, you want to do one thing more than anything. Beat the game!

It can be horses, football, whatever. For me , the satisfaction isn't an extra couple of hundred or thousand in my pocket. It's knowing you beat the system. The game as a whole.

Could I spend a ton of time and beat the horses. Yes. But at what cost? I'd put a lot more time into the game but maybe see less of my grandkids, my wife, my kids, etc. etc. Been there , done that, as I will explain in a minute.
Again speaking for myself, I LIVE to beat the NFL. I've beaten the horses and I kind of look at it like, as much as I know what to look for and with all the experience I have had in the game, If I don't beat it, I must be a damn fool. But that is unique to me and took decades of 12-14 hour days and plenty of 7 days a week. Half a lifetime. And that had a cost.

At the time, I sacrificed time from my girlfriend and my friends from school days. Lost touch for a while with them. Never reconnected with some, now know a fair amount well, and a few, VERY well. Married my old girlfriend and we are at 44 years and counting. As I said before, as a trainer, she was my best claim I ever made. I got lucky.

As for the NFL, I love the challenge. I play tournaments and a weekly pool or two but the most joy comes from waiting, lurking, and seriously betting 6 or 8 or however many present themselves each year while NEVER forcing a play. I don't need to. You don't either. When the end of the season comes, and I have won on those serious plays, money can't buy the feeling I get. Mainly because I know how hard betting and beating the NFL is.
Maybe I learned to not worry about betting all the time from watching thousands of races live and having no bet in the race. My money was actually out on the track running, so no time or desire to bet tickets. Whatever the case, it has me in a very comfortable spot these days.

And you go 5 for 5 on a big Saturday card. Heck with the couple hundred you might have bet on Fierceness, look at what you saw, learned, and are smarter moving forward with. Knowledge. Something as we get older was might find ourselves taking for granted. But we paid a long and dear price for that Madison. So now it is time to reap the reward that comes from paying that price.

Maybe approach the game like making small consistent plays, whatever you decide, but allow yourself a chance for a subset of plays that you feel make perfect sense. Those would be at a higher amount. Maybe a play in the winter, a play or two, or none, in the spring, same with the summer and fall. Keep the garden variety plays in one column and the big select plays in another. Adjust accordingly once you have some data.
As for what to play, my only advise would be that understanding how what happened last Saturday with Fierceness should, in my mind, be much more important than cashing a ticket of any real size on a horse that pays 4.20. No knock on you, that's just my view.
With that, I have pretty much thought since last Saturday, that if he makes the lead and a clean right eye and can keep the first 1/2 mile at 47 and change or better, he pretty much can't lose the Derby. So I won't be solely looking to see if he can win or not, I will be looking to see if he can be compromised or not, thus making a differing style of runner worth a play. I would not consider betting him at what will probably be about even money. But if I feel he can't lose if he breaks kind of thing, I will then handicap trying to find a horse or horses that might run 2nd, 3rd, or whatever, depending on how the race takes shape. Then check the value of those plays, and bet accordingly, or just watch for the future.

I hope this stuff makes sense Madison. I don't know if it will help you or not. Sure hope at least some of it does.

GL and all the best to you sir.

You are one of few who can touch the heart of who I am/was and the demon/gods who haunt me. Many thanks!!

Would love to spend some precious time of what's remaining with your intellect.

All my best!!

[Madison]

Sorry, can't seem to post screen shots.

Kingsbarns appears to be entered in the Ben Ali? 4/20 at KEE.

[JBEX]

Sorry, can't seem to post screen shots.

Kingsbarns appears to be entered in the Ben Ali? 4/20 at KEE.

where'd you see that ?

[Madison]

where'd you see that ?

Offered many many months ago for good or bad?

Stakes Schedule - Calendar - Horse Racing (horseracingnation.com)

[JBEX]

Offered many many months ago for good or bad?

Stakes Schedule - Calendar - Horse Racing (horseracingnation.com)

ok madison..don't know how they come up with that but there he is ..thanks

[JBEX]

I look at condition indexes and stakes schedules to see what might be a good fit

[Madison]

ok madison..don't know how they come up with that but there he is ..thanks

Just trying help/contribute. In races out on the timeline I have seen horses/entered in multiple future races.